Monday, May 4, 2015

My Latest Appalachian Trail Posts

Day 31: Good
News

This will be very brief because I'm back up
at Crooked Creek to help with women's retreat and I'm scrambling to fit
everything in.

I wanted to
tell you both how much I loved the video you posted of the first 2 weeks of
your hike! (See: www.trudgecompany.com)
It was great to see you out there on the trail...and a sober reminder of the
weather you two have had to deal with on this trip: rain...rain...and more
rain. I was also struck by the lack of foliage and greenery. In my head,
whenever I envisioned you hiking, it was all green and lush (like Ben and I experienced
when we hiked the Georgia portion). But I just wasn't thinking about how early
in the year it is...and how you're hiking BEFORE the peak of Spring. Still, you
both seem SO happy on your video…in your text messages…on the phone…and whenever
we get to FaceTime you. You're both in such great spirits! It always lifts
mine. Which brings me to today's Bible verse from Proverbs 15:30:

"The
light of the eyes rejoices the heart, and good news refreshes the bones."

That is how
Mom and I feel when we see you two...so happy and filled with life...as you
continue on your journey. The "light of your eyes" makes us
rejoice...and the good news you're giving us (in all the stories you share)
warms us to the core ("refreshes the
bones") to know you're both so happy.

Every parent
wants their kids to be happy...and while you two were already happy...there's a
joy in you now that is evident in everything we see and hear. That's
good news that refreshes our bones.

Love,

Dad

Day 32:
Trail Family

After
FaceTiming you the other night, and hearing some of the stories you both
shared, I've been thinking a lot about your friends Old Drum and Yvonne Sherpa
(I'd love to know the story behind those trail names). It's always fun to hear
about all the interesting people you're meeting…and all the "trail
magic" you're experiencing. I know that this is a major part of what this
hike to Maine is all about, but I have to tell you, hearing about Old Drum and
Yvonne Sherpa helps settle some of my unrest.

I knew from
the beginning that you'd be out there on your own with no real family support...other
than us writing you or talking on the phone or texting or the occasional supply
box mailing. It's nice to know that God has placed people like Old Drum and
Yvonne Sherpa along your path. I know that when you first met them, early on in
your hike, they were intriguing--having thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail
together at age 60...and the fact that they took such an interest in both of
you was great. It sounds like they are like a lot of other couples who (after
years of marriage) settle into that lovable teasing and bickering stage of
their relationship...where their love for each other is usually shown through
well-worn jabs and playful gigging. Hearing that Yvonne Sherpa constantly
chastises Old Drum when he launches into another story by saying, "Here
we go down memory lane!" makes me laugh...and think about my own grandparents
and what their relationship used to be like. But when you told us how--after
losing track of Old Drum and Yvonne Sherpa on the hike for a couple of
weeks--you walked into that Hot Springs, NC diner and there they were…waiting
for you! It made me so grateful.

I mean, here
is this couple...who you've only met a couple of times on the trail...holding a
spot for you at that breakfast diner because...as Yvonne said, "We knew
this is where you'd show up" is amazing and wonderful. Amazing to me,
but I guess not that big of a surprise to you. You two have stepped into
another world where strangers treat each other as family and where simple acts
of kindness seem to be the norm. Jesus put it this way:

"You have heard that
it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you,
love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be
children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil
and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you
love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors
doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more
than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your
heavenly Father is perfect."

Knowing that
you have people like Old Drum and Yvonne Sherpa out there...loving and caring
for you two as if you were their own...is a great comfort. They call you part
of their "trail family" and I know it has already had a profound
effect on you...and makes me wonder what kind of effect it will have on you in
the future.

I
wonder...years from now...will there be another young couple, thru-hiking the
AT...who will be telling the story of Sunshine and Breeze...and the trail magic
they received from them?

I smiled a lot reading the "30
Things We've Learned in our First 30 Days on the Appalachian Trail",
but I couldn't get # 1 out of my mind….and I probably won't for a while. Nick,
you wrote:

"There is always a gap between Sunshine (Katie)
and I.

Sometimes it is very short as I’m kicking her heels
or bumping into her pack when she comes to a stop. Sometimes we hike 100 yards
apart. Sometimes we talk, sometimes we listen to music and sometimes we go in
silence. Sometimes we get along, sometimes we argue. Sometimes we’re happy and
energetic and other times we’re cranky and hungry or need to poop.

There is always a gap between us. I am always aware
of this gap. I always know where she is. No one gets between us. We always hike
together and stop together. It’s an interesting thing to ponder on, the space
between us."

The Space
Between Us

Nick, I
can't express enough how grateful I am that you are Katie's husband…that you
care for her the way you do…and that you two are out there in the woods of
North Carolina right now fulfilling this dream. I love your words about "the space between us." Again, I go back to the way God made
us for relationship…to seek out another…and how "the two will become
one" (Mark 10:8). But even in our oneness…there is a space between. The truth is, there's
always going to be space between a couple…and that space will be whatever we make
of it, right? It can be the common distance that unifies us and keeps us safe
and makes us feel loved…or it can become a gaping chasm that leads to
destruction. The choice is always ours, isn't it? 1 Peter 4:8 reads:

"Above all, love each other deeply,
because love covers over a multitude of sins."

I have no
doubts whatsoever that you love each other deeply. And I know that as you
continue on this journey north you will keep that space between each other safe and protected. It is a space that
will expand and contract, literally and figuratively, throughout this hike…and
throughout your marriage. I only ask that you continue to invite Jesus into
that space each day--the only bridge for any break…any gap…or any division.